Support for wagon-tongues.



F. TROST.

SUPPORT FOR WAGON TONGUES.

APPLIOATIOHPILED OUT. 28, 1907- Patented Jan. 26, 1909.

INVENTOR Frederic/1f Trasi'.

WITNESSES:

I ATT RNEY FREDERICK TROST, OF DUNKERTON, IOWA.

SUPPORT FOR WAGON-TONGUES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 26, 1909.

Application filed October 28, 1907. Serial No. 399,453.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK TROST, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Dunkerton, Blackhawk county, Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Supports for Wagon- Tongues, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in supports for wagon-tongues, and the object of my invention is to provide a resilient support for a wagon-tongue or pole, the point of application of such support to said tongue being intermediate between its free end and its connection to the front axle, with the intention of removing the weight of said tongue from the horses. This object I have accomplished by the means which are hereinafter described and claimed, and which are illustrated in the drawings hereto annexed, in Which:-

Figure 1 is a plan view of the front part of the running-gear and supports of a wagon, with the tongue, and my improved supporting device connected therebetween. -Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail elevation of the rolling and resilient connection between the tongue and the said supporting-device.

Similar numbers refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

It is well known that the tongue or pole of a wagon with its appendages of the equalizers and other parts become when of the large size and weight necessary for use in connection with a vehicle of large capacity or heavy construction very burdensome and exhausting to the draft animals, and I have devised a way of supporting such tongue from the front part of the vehicle frame which is very effective in relieving the animals from this drainupon their strength.

The tongue 8 is secured in the usual way to an axle 17 on whose ends the front carryingwheels 2 are rotatably mounted. The wagonframe 18 with its front cross-bar 9 is mounted above said axle and pivotally connected to the king-pin 7 extending from said axle 17. The numerals 6 and 3 represent respectively forward prolongations of said frame and brackets supported thereby.

The numeral 1 designates a semi-circular supporting bar concentric with the king-pin 7, whose middle portion is afiixed to the forward ends of the brackets 3, while its ends 5 are bent radially outward and secured to the frame cross-bar 9. The tongue 8 is shown as having an equalizing-beam 15 pivotally connected thereto by a bolt 19. termediate between the bolt 19 and the connection of the rear end of the tongue 8 to the axle, an eye-bolt 14 is inserted vertically in an orifice in the tongue and secured thereto by a nut 16.

The numeral 4 designates a flanged caster mounted on the upper edge of the semi-circular supporting bar 1 to roll thereover, said caster being rotatable on a pintle 11 in the boxing 10, the latter having a depending hook 12 between which and the eye 14 of the bolt through said tongue '8 a tension-spring 13 is connected.

The above device will resiliently support the tongue and at all times take its weight from the horses without binding, since the caster l is in rolling contact with a semi-circular track-way with the resilient connection 13 pendent vertically therefrom and engaging the tongue at right angles. The rolling caster 4 thus keeps the device perpendicular to the tongue, while the spring 13 forms a resilient connection to prevent undue jarring of the bar 1. The latter being strongly bracketed from the frame is suflicient to bear the weight of the tongue at all times.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

In combination, an axle, a king-pin projecting from said axle, a wagon-frame supported on said axle and having a pivotal connection therewith on said king-pin, a forwardly-projecting tongue secured. to said axle medially, a forwardly-projecting horizontal bracket over and spaced apart from the rear portion of said tongue and supported by the said wagon-frame, said bracket being curved in the form of an arc of a circle concentric with said king-pin, carrying-means freely movable along said bracket, and a resilient connection between said carryingmeans and said tongue adapted to shift said carrying-means along the bracket as the tongue swings laterally thereunder, to equalize the vertical draft of the tongue.

Signed at Waterloo, Iowa, this 9th day of Oct. 1907.

FRED. TROST. Witnesses:

G. G. KENNEDY, O. D. YOUNG.

At a point in-' 

